Bitflyer.jp offers a multi-functional trading platform based out of Japan and has been in operation since 2014. There is a platform for those that want to exchange Japanese Yen (JPY) for Bitcoin as well as sell Bitcoin, plus there is a forex style trading platform for members that want to margin trade. Both tools are available from a single account.

One of the reasons this exchange has become so popular in the Far East is because of its flexibility, security, and trustworthiness. You can deal in fiat currency as well as cryptocurrency moving from fiat to digital currencies in a matter of minutes. The site is also well known for its JPY/BTC pair and BTC/ETH trading.

Plus, you can margin trade on the website using Bitflyer.jp’s well-designed Lightning Platform that has been specifically designed with traders in mind. This has allowed Bitflyer.jp to start a platform that offers to trade in US dollars and soon the company will be adding altcoins. Depending on the time you read this review, these changes may have already happened.

As a company, Bitflyer has a Japanese Financial Services Agency (JFSA) License. In 2017, the company also notably gained approval from the New York Department of Financial Services (NYDFS).

There has never been any hacks reported thanks to a very secure system. For those looking to trade from outside of Japan, this is a multi-language website available in English, Chinese, Korean, and French in order to attract users from around the globe. The site also provides news, Facebook, and Twitter profiles so you can keep up to date with the latest Bitflyer happenings.

Platform for buying and selling digital currency using JPY

Trading platform for margin trades with 1:15 leverage

Deposit and withdraw Euros and cryptocurrency

Fully insured and approved by financial regulators

Mobile Apps

As the website is fully mobile responsive, you don’t actually need to use the mobile apps. Members can simply create a shortcut to Bitflyer on their mobile phone front page for quick access. You can use any mobile browser to access the site too, so for those that want to buy and sell while on the move, bitflyer.jp is a great option.

However, there are apps designed for the website for use on both Android as well as iOS. As the Japanese market has such high smartphone usage, there was no way this site would set-up without a mobile app in place. Apps are something the Japanese demand for almost any online site they deal with via their mobile devices.

If you visit the Google Play or App Store, depending on the device you have, you will also see that a few third-party individuals have designed a mobile app for bitflyer.jp for market data purposes. These are not apps designed by the Bitflyer team, but they are useful if you want quick access to the latest market data trends via an app.

iOS and Android Apps available from AppStore and Google Play

Windows, Blackberry, Android, and iOS mobile browser access

Save a shortcut to the website on your mobile device for quick access

Both desktop and mobile versions of the site available

Bitflyer.jp Trading Options

All trading at bitflyer.jp is performed using Japanese YEN. There is a leverage ratio of 1:15, but to be able to margin trade you must go through the verification processes when you sign up. At first glance, the 1:15 ratio is quite low compared to markets such as forex whereby trading is 1:5 or more in most cases.

The best explanation for this is because forex markets do not fluctuate as much as cryptocurrencies. Pairs will generally fluctuate just 1% – 2% on forex, but with crypto positive or negative changes can be as high as 10% and more than this over time.

On Bitflyer.jp, there are 2 trading platforms that are web-based.

Bitcoin Easy Exchange

This platform has been designed specially to facilitate direct transfers from JPY to BTC. This is for those that want to exchange their Yen into Bitcoin and vice versa. That is to say, this is the platform used to convert fiat currency to cryptocurrency. In short, if you want to buy or sell Bitcoin for JPY, this is the tool to use.

See the screenshot below for a preview of this tool:

BitFlyer Lighting Platform

This is the second trading platform provided by bitflyer.jp. It actually looks and feels exactly like a forex trading platform. Anyone that is or was a forex trader will no doubt fall in love with this interface.

It has been fully designed to give all the information a professional trader would want to margin trade, which is exactly what this platform is for. As mentioned above, this is where the 1:15 leverage ratio come into play.

See the screenshot below for a preview of the dashboard:

On the left-hand side, you will see a set of indicators and the order book is right in the centre with the tape on the right-hand side. Further fields of information are below this and the charting is extremely well designed in our opinion with great technical indicators. You also have the option to switch this to a small screen mode or full screen.

Other configurable options include theme changes. You can change the colouring to suit your own preferences with a variety of options in place to do so. There are also sound effects on this platform, which is a nice touch; however, after a while of using this interface to trade you will probably end up turning them off. The sounds indicate price movements as well as bid/ask requests from the order book.

As a final note, if you are going to use this platform and you are not in Japan; therefore, you are trading using another currency, then you may want to open an account with a forex broker too in order to hedge any risk of currency fluctuation.

There are 2 trading platforms

Bitcoin Easy Exchange: Convert Yen into Bitcoin

BitFlyer Lighting Platform: For margin trading

All trades and purchases are performed in JPY

Coins Offered

Bitlyer.jp has several pairs to trade. Just bear in mind that the company will only deal in Japanese Yen. There are many Bitcoin instruments that you can use on Bitflyer including BTC Futures, Spot BTC trading and Margin BTC trading. However, it is important not to confuse this with Bitcoin Cash. There is also Ethereum trading available, which is always performed against Bitcoin.

Registering at Bitflyer.jp

Registering an account is very simple. You have a plethora of options available to you to get onto the Far East’s most popular trading platform.

Sign up with an email address

Create an account your Facebook

Sign up with Yahoo

Sign up via your Google account

You also have the option to sign up with:

An Individual Account

Corporate Account

Once you have chosen your preferred sign up method, you will be asked to verify your account o begin using the cryptocurrency tools made available to you on bitflyer.jp.

Making a Purchase or Exchange on Bitflyer.jp

For those looking to use fiat currency payment methods to an exchange, Bitflyer.jp is perfect. You can make money transfers from banks and credit cards from companies in Japan. For foreign customers, this is not that useful.

For international customers, it can be quite difficult to fund an account using fiat currency because even most e-wallets cannot be used. However, where there is a will there is a way because there are plenty of international customers using this exchange.

You may want to fund your account using a cryptocurrency wallet that accepts fiat currency. This way you can transfer cryptocurrency to your Bitflyer account, trade, and then move it back to your wallet. For US-based customers, you can now use the new US platform, which by the time you read this review should be up and running.

Japanese credit cards and bank transfer

Cryptocurrency wallet funding

No e-wallets accepted

US-based website

Transaction Fees

Fees on Bitflyer.jp differ between each service. JPY to BTC fees can be as high as 0.15% if you are exchanging at low volumes, but this still isn’t too bad considering the safety of the website and its insurance back up – you are basically paying for the safety of trading at Bitflyer. For higher volume trades, fees can be as low as 0.01%.

For ETH/BTC, you are looking at fees of around 0.20%. This is a flat fee, so it will not change regardless of the volume that you trade in.

Here is a table of standard fees offered:

Fees are mediocre in comparison to other exchanges

Very fast deposits

Bitwire fees are free

Countries Supported

Bitflyer.jp will allow account signups from almost any country. The only barrier you may hit along the way is finding a method of funding that is compatible with JPY. There is a new US based system built into the site now, so Bitflyer will begin trading in the US market. This means that those with US bank accounts should now be able to fund their Bitflyer account.

Japan is the main target market

US market is being deployed

Customer Support

A stand out feature of Bitflyer is the fact that the site offers terrific customer support. On the homepage of the website on the top menu, you will see that there is a support option. Click here for support and you will find a variety of ways to get answers to any query you have regarding the website’s inner workings as well as answers to problems you may be having with the site.

There is a search bar where you can enter a question or keyword to see if there is an article that may be able to help you, or you can search by category.

Categories include:

Account Creation

Login and Password

Update Registered Information

Buy / Sell or Orders

Receiving / Sending Bitcoin

Deposit / Withdrawal

Lightning

Settings

Others

For customer support, the company is open 9 am to 7 pm but bear in mind this is Japanese time! Once you have opened an account, you will have the option to open a support ticket to which response times are usually lightning quick depending on how busy the support centre is.

Safety

When it comes to safety, we use several factors to judge this area. First and foremost, we have to mention that any cryptocurrency in your account is insured against any fraudulent activity.

In Japan, Cryptocurrencies are an asset and subject to capital gains taxes; therefore, Bitflyer has been able to take out an insurance policy for its website’s assets, which is all the protection you need. If your currency goes missing, the company will replace it via insurance.

Now there is no insurance company in the world that is going to provide insurance to such a large company dealing with huge amounts of cash unless the insurance company is 100% confident cybersecurity has been taken seriously. Next generation encryption is provided by Digicert and all Bitcoins are stored in cold wallets.

On top of all this, if you did not already read the introduction, then we will repeat: “Bitflyer has a Japanese Financial Services Agency (JFSA) License. In 2017, the company also notably gained approval from the New York Department of Financial Services (NYDFS)” Again, cybersecurity and absolute trustworthiness are a 100% must in order to have these licenses issued.

To put it to you simply, this is the safest and most trustworthy exchange in the world. It has never been hacked and you always have customers services to back you up should there be any issues with your account.

All cryptocurrency on the site is insured

The site has never been hacked

NYDFS and JFSA financial approved licencing

High-end encryption

Why Choose Bitflyer.jp

It is difficult to find any bad reviews written in English about bitflyer.jp, so the masses of traders and cryptocurrency users outside of Japan using the site are nearly all happy with the service they receive. If you are a person that judges an exchange off the back of its reviews, then give Bitflyer.jp a test run to see what it is all about.

Forex brokers and serious cryptocurrency traders will be especially impressed with bitflyer.jp because it has such a well laid out trading interface. Also, the fact that there are 2 platforms separated for their own individual purposes.

Bitcoin Easy Exchange helps you easily buy and sell Bitcoins for fiat currency – Yen and soon to be US dollars (US$ may already be available by the time you read this). Then there is the Bitflyer Lightning Platform, which is an awesome trading tool laid out superbly with all the information in place a trader could ask for.

As for the trustworthiness of the company, well it is flawless in reputation and security. There has never been a hack on the site and the company is registered and licensed with both Japanese and US financial trading associations.

Furthermore, as mentioned on their home page, the company has two types of insurance coverage from one Japan’s most reputable insurance companies. As cryptocurrencies are treated as assets in Japan, these can be insured, and so customers are always protected if there ever was a hack.

Pros and Cons of Bi Bitflyer.jp

We always like to point out the cons of using an exchange. In fact, if we have even the slightest excuse to write a con no matter how small it is, we will just so you know. However, we have really struggled to find many cons to trading, buying, or selling cryptocurrencies at Bitflyer.jp.